SINGAPORE, Oct 16 — Lim Oon Kuin, the founder of defunct oil trading giant Hin Leong Trading, will face sentencing on November 18 after being convicted of cheating and forgery in what prosecutors have described as “one of the most serious cases of trade financing fraud ever prosecuted in Singapore”.

According to The Straits Times (ST), the prosecution is seeking a maximum 20-year prison term for the 82-year-old, commonly known as OK Lim, whose fraudulent actions damaged Singapore’s reputation as a leading oil trading hub.

Deputy Chief Prosecutor Christopher Ong, addressing the court on 15 October, called for a total of 20 years’ imprisonment, arguing that Lim’s offenses were “examples of the worst possible offenses of cheating.”

“Lim’s offenses affected the delivery of financial services in Singapore and tarnished Singapore’s hard-earned reputation as Asia’s leading oil trading hub,” he was quoted as saying.

The charges against Lim stem from fabricated contracts with China Aviation Oil (Singapore) and Unipec Singapore, which Hin Leong falsely claimed to have entered into.

Based on these fake contracts, Lim applied for financing, submitting forged documents to HSBC to secure the funds. The court found that these transactions were complete fabrications orchestrated by Lim. Lim was found guilty in May of two counts of cheating and one count of instigating forgery to deceive HSBC into disbursing US$111.6 million (RM479.2 million) to his company.

Of this amount, US$85 million remains unpaid, contributing to the collapse of Hin Leong, once one of Asia’s largest oil traders.